This article first appeared in November 2010 on my other
blog. All of the genealogy studies are currently being
edited and relocated.

The Search for Zedekiah Ledbetter, Part 2

Part 1: Setting the Stage is found here. The questions posed in Part 1 specifically mentioned conflicting details surrounding Zedekiah’s birth and death. There is information and misinformation circulating about this man and to trace him one needs a timeline, an atlas, and a certain amount of religious and United States history knowledge. Only by combining these facets can one reach reasonable conclusions.

Question 1 – What was his date of birth?

The information found on the Internet covers a wide range. Dates range anywhere from circa 1740 to almost 1760. The reason for any single approximation is based upon how old he must have been at the time of a major life event (i.e. marriage or the birth of a child). Such a broad range makes researchers wonder if there could be more than one man by the name of Zedekiah Ledbetter. I, for one, do not think so. I believe that every piece of information found pertains to only one individual. With that in mind, let’s examine the details.

Answer:

His year of birth was given in both Ledbetters from Virginia and Ledbetters Revisited. The specific date comes from a handwritten note “To Benjamin Bell” that lists all “Children Borne [sic] to Charles Ledbetter and his wife francis [sic].” Not only are the children’s names given, but their dates of birth are also. The addressee, Benjamin Bell, married Elizabeth “Betsey” Ledbetter and was therefore the brother-in-law of Zedekiah. Bell died in 1843 in Montgomery Co., NC so this paper obviously predates that. I personally think that Zedekiah himself wrote the note based upon my unprofessional comparison of his handwriting on the page with that found on another letter that he sent to Bell in 1809. (Compare the 3 examples below.) The writing is bigger on the first paper but the letters are made in the same way. Although the page is unsigned it tells the recipient that if he has any questions the reader should “ceap [sic] it till I come and perhaps I can unriddle it.” According to this paper Zedekiah Ledbetter’s date of birth is August 27, 1758. (Source: NC State Archives, “The W.K. Littleton Collection,” P.C. #227.1.)

1. The name of Zedekiah Ledbetter as it appears on the page with names and birth dates for the children of Charles and “Francis” Ledbetter; 2. Zed Ledbetter signature on 1809 letter written from TN to the Bell family; 3. Zed Ledbetter signature on marriage bond written in 1818 for nuptials between Thomas Green and Miss Tabitha Ledbetter in Feliciana Parish, LA (certified copy courtesy of Shawn Martin).

It is also known that Zedekiah was born in Brunswick Co., VA and left with his parents at the time of the American Revolution. The Tories of Brunswick ran the Yankee-sympathizing Ledbetter family from the area. They moved to Anson Co., VA.

Atlas point 1 – Brunswick Co., VA which is located near the VA/NC state line in the middle portion of the state.

Atlas point 2 – Anson Co., NC which is located in the lower Piedmont region near the current NC/SC state line.

US History note – Revolutionary War, family sympathetic to the patriot cause.

Question 2 – Can all known documents be attributed to one individual?

Several deeds, wills, census records, and family obituaries from various locations across the then-United States cite the name of Zedekiah Ledbetter. Do these all reference life events for only one man?

Answer:

In my opinion, yes. The most obvious point is that no other Ledbetter family was known to have a child by that name. It does not appear to be one of the distinct trademark names that was used in different generations or extended family like Drury and Grey were. Barring the discovery of another birth record or finding an event that cannot “fit” into his normal lifespan, there is no reason to invent another person by that name.

February 1779 – Zedekiah Ledbetter is on the 2nd list that petitioners from the upper end of the county sent to the governor, council, and assembly asking for Anson to be divided into 2 counties. (Source: Anson County, North Carolina: Abstracts of Early Records compiled by May Wilson McBee, c. 1978, p. 136.) U.S. History Note – the Revolutionary War was not over.

Montgomery County Tax List, 1782 – His name appears and the entry shows the following: invalid, 50 acres, 2 slaves. (Source: Anson County, North Carolina: Abstracts of Early Records compiled by May Wilson McBee, c. 1978, p. 145. *This would be the ONLY record that might cause me to believe in a 2nd man by the name of Zedekiah Ledbetter due to the “invalid” listing. I do not know much about the tax so I cannot determine if it means he was aged and unable to work, or if it means that he failed to meet a standard requirement for a certain taxable commodity (which would make the word mean “not valid”). Since anywhere to 1/4 to 1/3 of the names on the list have the designation of “invalid” I tend to believe it to mean “not valid.” The other meaning designates a significant portion of the population as elderly and/or infirm.

February 17, 1784 – He was named specifically as son-in-law in the will of David Hyde. (Source:Northampton County, North Carolina 1759-1808 Gennealogical Abstracts of Wills by Margaret M. Hofmann. Will #233, page 348 and proven in June Court 1785.) Atlas Note: Northampton Co., NC is across the state line from Brunswick Co., VA.

The 1st U.S. Federal Census, 1790 – He resided in Fayette District of Anson Co., NC. This is the ONLY place that the name Zedekiah Ledbetter appears in that census ANYWHERE. If there was another Zedekiah Ledbetter living he would most likely be enumerated. The entry shows that he is a male above the age of 16 (he would be approximately 32), there were 2 free white males under 16, 5 free white females, and 6 slaves enumerated with him.

July 21, 1791 – Zedekiah Ledbetter witnessed a sale of land between Van Swearingen and Stephen Hyde, both of Anson. (Source: Anson County, North Carolina: Abstracts of Early Records compiled by May Wilson McBee, c. 1978, p.62 – original found in county deed book B#2, p. 405.) I believe that Stephen Hyde was Zedekiah’s brother-in-law (his wife’s brother, as per the above mentioned will. Theories about his various wives will not be discussed in this article).

The 2nd U.S. Federal Census, 1800 – He resided in Montgomery County, North Carolina This county was formed from Anson County. There were 3 free white males 16-25, 1 male 26-44 (he would be approximately 42), 2 free white females under the age of 10, and 1 free white female 16-25. There was only 1 free white person over the age of 25 (himself) and 6 slaves for a total of 14 people in the household.

July 31,1809 – He wrote a letter that begins, “My Dear Bro and Sister,” and specifically names the addressee as Bro. Bell in two places within the body of the letter. He tells of preaching a sermon from 1 Timothy 6:6 the day before (Sunday, July 30th). He later tells about how good the crops are in what he calls “this part of the world” and tells how many bushels he has seen “go up the river since I came here.” He signs his name “Zed Ledbetter” and his location is given as “Stewart County, Ten.” (Source: This letter is probably from the Benjamin Bell files listed above, however, I obtained my copy from the Daughters of the American Revolution. Benjamin Bell served as a soldier and someone that descends from him submitted the document as part of her proofs for membership. Copies of the paper may be ordered through the DAR library. Atlas note: Stewart County, TN is near the confluence of the Tennessee, Cumberland, and Ohio rivers, which happens north of this location near what is now Paducah, Kentucky.

February, 1810 – Zedekiah Ledbetter is one of five men appointed by the court in Caldwell County, KY to view a road from the state line on the Tennessee River for the nearest and best way to Harry Darnal’s and to report at the next court. (Source: Caldwell County, Kentucky Court Order Book B1, page 70 for the Jan/Feb/May court session.)

Tax lists for 1810-1814 – Zedekiah Ledbetter is listed in Caldwell County lists. (Source: Caldwell County, Kentucky Tax Lists compiled by Don Simmons. Note that I mentioned in the earlier edition of this article that I had not viewed these. I viewed them in April, 2014.)

Interspersed among these are deeds, notes having to do with putting children into apprenticeships, and other sundry legal procedures. They all happen prior to 1811 and they all fit into the time line for the known Zedekiah.

Question 3 – When did Zedekiah Ledbetter die and where?

At this point most Internet sources say that he died in 1811 in Montgomery County, North Carolina. Why do they make such a claim? I suspect that back in the days when research was done completely by visiting courthouses and archives, someone lost his trail after the 1810 census in Montgomery County, NC and assumed that he died there. This supposition has been repeated without verification as fact ever since!

Answer:

I believe he died after 1820 and most likely in Louisiana. That is a few years and many miles away from 1811 in North Carolina! Here are a few more “Zedekiah Ledbetter” sightings and citings that seem to indicate that the man lived longer than earlier researchers supposed. It is also why it is important to make that case that there was only 1 person by the name of Zedekiah Ledbetter alive at that time.

1812 – Zedekiah Ledbetter claimed land west of the Pearl River in what is now Louisiana. (Source: The Library of Congress, document found here or here Under “A Century of Lawmaking” and is on page 387 and in record dates 1820.)

1820 – He is found in the 4th U. S. Federal Census in Thompson Creek, Feliciana Parish, Louisiana. His name is spelled “Zebediah” Ledbetter and Ancestry.com has it indexed as Lebediah Ledbetter even though the two capital “L”s are not identical. I think it is safe to assume that this is the same person as the Zedekiah Ledbetter who filed a claim on land in the region in 1812. In the census, the household contains 1 free white male 16-25, 1 free white male age 45 or older (he would be approximately 62), and two slaves: 1 male 26-44 and 1 female over the age of 45. Everyone in the household is engaged in agriculture. If there had been another man by that name and of this age, he should surely have appeared in at least one of the other federal census abstracts, but none did. It seems reasonable to assume that the head of household named “Zebediah” is the older man and not the 16-25 year old. The man who is over the age of 45 is the correct age to be the same Zedekiah Ledbetter that was born on August 27, 1758.

Why did I say that it is necessary to have a knowledge of religion and basic US history? These are necessary to explain his movements. It is not known how many children he had, but it is known that he definitely had two daughters. His daughter, Oney Ledbetter married first to James Raiford and later to George Shankle. This family moved to Wilcox County, Alabama. Oney Shankle is buried there in the Capell Cemetery. Her obituary is found in the book Marriage and Death Notices from the Southern Christian Advocate, Vol: 1, 1837-1860, page 372 by Brent H. Holcomb. Oney was born in 1781 in Montgomery Co., NC and her parents were Zedekiah and Tabitha Ledbetter according to the same source. It also states that in April of the previous year (prior to her death in Feb. 1855) she stopped in Camden to see her sister.

Oney’s sister was Lucy H. Ledbetter who first married Aaron Baldwin and then Jonathan Mason. Lucy’s obituary also appeared in the same source but in Vol. 2: 1861-1867, page 203. It states that she was born in N.C. in 1792 or 3, that she moved to Alabama in 1817, and that she was the daughter of Rev. Zedekiah Ledbetter.

Several things can be gleaned from these obituaries. One is that the family was on the move from North Carolina in the early 1800’s. This is because land was opened up along several trails following the Revolution and the War of 1812. Andrew Jackson, a citizen living in an area near to Zedekiah’s location when he sent his letter to Benjamin Bell in 1809, made his way to the Gulf of Mexico along the Natchez Trail during that era of history. I have no doubt that Zedekiah did likewise.

As far as religious history in the USA, the family was Methodist. Zedekiah was known to have been preaching as early as 1809 when he wrote to his brother-in-law. Since the denomination was known for its circuit riding preachers it can be assumed that he traveled to preach the gospel.

Given the facts that Zedekiah Ledbetter’s two known daughters lived in southern Alabama in the early 1800’s, that he was known to have lived in Tennessee at about the same time, and a man by this distinctive name filed a claim for land in a territory a little further west than where his daughters resided it is not unreasonable to assume that the man who filed the claim was the same Zedekiah Ledbetter. Therefore, my conclusion is that Zedekiah Ledbetter died after the census of 1820 and probably in Louisiana.

Do you have any further information about Zedekiah Ledbetter?

***

Note: This is one of the most popular posts to receive hits at its former location. Here are a few of the comments that were left there. Feel free to add your own here.

I think old Zedekiah had at least one more daughter Elizabeth M Ledbetter who married James Barnett 8/3/1814 in Caldwell Co, KY as he gave consent. I also suspect he is related to Ephraim Ledbetter who married Peggy Cook in the same county on 2/18/1810. Also living in the same county is a Lydia Ledbetter Mcdowell Shellhouse (wife of Lewis/Louis Shellhouse) who I suspect is also one of his daughters. There is also a Wiley Ledbetter, later a minister, who is connected to Caldwell Co, KY and possibly a Matthew Ledbetter. Good research and I agree that he was alive at least through 1814. Lydia Ledbetter has a connection with some Georgia Ledbetters. Her oldest grandchild was named Mahana Buckner Jones, which makes me wonder if there is a relationship with the Buckner Ledbetter family or the Buckner Jones family. FYI.

Agrees that Zed had another daughter. I have a Mary Ledbetter married to William Caswell Smith. All the info I have is from the Louisiana archivies and ancestry.com. Was Mary married to this James Barnett and later to Caswell.

Thanks for the additional information, Cheri. I suspect that you are correct about the additional children’s names. These would fit easily into the census abstracts.

I enjoyed our discussions on this subject last year. The Caldwell Co., KY leads you provided me then were very helpful in compiling the timeline.

As you may have seen, this post was only one in a series that I will be giving as a guest lecturist. As though researching ol’ Zed wasn’t trouble enough, now I’ve got to put this stuff and the other ancestors chosen together into a powerpoint presentation!

If you discover any more about our enigmatic ancestor, I hope you’ll return and share it with us.

Did Zedekiah have a son named Zedekiah? I have the marriage document of Thomas Green and Tabitha Ledbetter dated 22 Apr 1818 in Feliciana Parish, LA (later West Feliciana Parish). Zedekiah Ledbetter signed the bond with Thomas Green. Either this was Zedekiah (b. 1758) or he was Zedekiah, Jr. In Tabitha Ledbetter Green’s 1812 Widow’s pension from the State of Louisiana, she gives her maiden name as Tabitha Randall Ledbetter. Surely, she was a daughter of Zedekiah Ledbetter and Tabitha Hyde.

I took a trip to West Feliciana Parish, LA courthouse last week. I found a succession record for Mrs. Sarah Leadbetter “formerly Sarah Ivy” who was the wife of Zedikiah Leadbetter. This document is dated Oct. 21, 1820. Sarah’s son, Isaac Ivy, was petitioning the court to administer her estate. On Oct 26th 1820, Mr. Zedikiah Ledbetter was summoned to appear in the West Feliciana Parish Judge’s office in Jackson within 10 days “to comply with the prayer of the above petitioner (Isaac Ivy) or file your opposition there to. Otherwise Judgment will be rendered against you by default.” This document was served Nov 20th 1820 “to a free member of the family above the age of fourteen” by the Deputy Sheriff. I could not find any other documents regarding the succession of Sarah Ledbetter. I believe Sarah’s maiden name was Kincheon and her first husband was Benjamin Ivey. They were originally from Randolph Co., NC.
The only other document I found mentioning Zedikiah Ledbetter was a deed dated 21 Oct 1820 where he sold land consisting of 640 acres to Caswell Smith. Caswell Smith was supposedly Zedikiah’s son in law, but I am still searching for proof. Zedikiah had purchased this property 18 Feb 1820 and the deed states “the same land on which the said Ledbetter now resides which said certificate was given by mistake in the name of Hezekiah instead of Zedekiah Ledbetter…”
I am still trying to prove my ancestor, Tabitha Randle Ledbetter Green, was the daughter of Zedikiah Ledbetter (who signed her marriage certificate to Thomas Green). Tabitha and Thomas Green named one of their sons Calvin Smith Green.
So, it seems Zedikiah remarried after the death of his first wife to a widow named Sarah Ivy and was alive at least until 21 October 1820. We will need to search the East Feliciana Parish court records to see if the Ledbetter family is recorded there. Jackson, LA (location where Zedekiah was to appear in court) is in East Feliciana Parish, LA.
I found in the 1820 Wilkinson Co., MS Census Caswell Smith and Zeckariah Smith listed. Wilkinson Co., MS adjoins West Feliciana Parish, LA to the north.

Shawn Martin
smarcmar@verizon.net

Advertisements

Share this:

Like this:

This post originally appeared on one of my other blogs. Since that blog has moved in a different direction I am experimenting with moving all genealogy-related posts here. I am the author of the original article and am editing and updating it for publication here.

Entry on page 456 of Kenneth Haughton’s book Ledbetters Revisited

Part 1: Setting the Stage

In the pursuit of ancestors I often encounter a person that is difficult to trace. This is not the “brick wall” type that signals the end of a certain familial branch, but an enigmatic individual whose life’s events are hard to construct via the usual means.One such person in my family tree is Zedekiah Ledbetter. Like a ghost, his name appears and disappears in numerous locations during the early years of US expansion. My fascination with him was renewed when I first read about the Ledbetter DNA project in the Summer edition of the New England Ancestor in 2006. I began again to research Zedekiah even though he is not specifically mentioned in the article. His father, however, is.

Besides organizing the Ledbetter DNA project the author, Kenneth E. Haughton, had written a book titled Ledbetters Revisited in 2000. This book both corrected and expanded some of the findings in the 1964 book The Ledbetters of Virginia written by Roy C. Ledbetter. The DNA project further corrected both of them. One of the most notable findings from the DNA study was that there are at least 2 distinct Ledbetter lines in America disproving the theory that all with that surname came from a couple of distantly related immigrants.

I corresponded briefly with Mr. Haughton to discuss his findings. Although I am no expert, I find DNA results to be fascinating as they pertain to the field of genealogy. While it is true that some of the more “interesting” findings might be what are euphemistically termed “non paternal events” they can also be used to place random individuals into an extended family. I had already seen such an “orphan” placed from my husband’s pedigree through a surname DNA study even though the details are missing to bridge the gap between the generations. My interest in the Ledbetter study was piqued for somewhat the same reason.

Unfortunately, as of 2006 no one of direct male lineage had come forward claiming descent through Zedekiah Ledbetter or even through his father, Charles, so there is no way for Zedekiah’s descendants to be represented in the study. In fact, the only documented offspring of Zedekiah’s are female even though it could be assumed that he had male children as well. (That will be discussed further in Part 2.)

What really can we say with any certainty about Zedekiah Ledbetter? Lacking DNA evidence researchers must rely upon the time honored method of paper documentation. And that is where things get a bit confusing.

While the Internet has helped to revolutionize the availability of genealogical information it has also helped to spread the virus of misinformation like a plague. Personally, I prefer to take the information found there as clues for further primary or secondary research. There is nothing like holding real documents found in an archive’s repository to substantiate a claim! In the absence of such, indices and transcripts found in books or databases must suffice. But never should a genealogist take another’s word for something without a shred of proof. Sources are essential!

Again, Zedekiah Ledbetter is the perfect example of this. Several family trees at various sites state that he was born anywhere from 1745 to 1758 and that he died after 1811 and was buried in Montgomery County, North Carolina. Can anything about his birth or death be proven? And what other facts can we find pertaining to Zedekiah? These are all details that I wish to examine about a man that I think makes an interesting case study.

An update to the original: with the help of one of the genealogists at the Daughters of the American Revolution offices, I was able to establish a link to an already-known patriot, Charles Leadbetter, through the son, Zedekiah. I recently checked the DAR files and noticed that three women have been able to join the society through Zedekiah. I am happy to have worked on this line and am very grateful to the genealogist who took the time to help me locate an important piece of paper from another member’s file that was necessary to prove the family connection.Part 2: Presenting the Evidence (an updated link will be provided once the move is made).

Like this:

For many years we had no idea where my great-grandmother, the woman born Nancy Josephine Tewksbury, was buried. The only information we had was that she died somewhere in California. Thanks to information received from distant relatives we were able to locate her grave and my parents were able to visit it. My dad took pictures there, including the one shown above, which provide a sense of closure.

Nancy Josephine Tewksbury was the only child of Thomas and Matilda Slater. Her surname is spelled correctly in the book but her father’s name was spelled “Tewksberry” in the same record. She was born October 6, 1872 in Scipio Township, Meigs County, Ohio. [1]

Josephine, as she was known, lived throughout her childhood near the line between Meigs and Athens counties. Her maternal grandparents both died about a year before she was born and her paternal grandmother died when she was three years old. Her Grandpa Tewksbury died when she was almost 10 years old. She had several aunts, uncles, and cousins on both sides of her family that lived in the towns and nearby farms. At least once she crossed the county line into Athens to visit town-dwelling family as The Athens Herald gossip tidbits relate that “Miss Josephine Tewksbury visited her aunt, Mrs. Cowan, of this place last week.” [2]

Pearley and Josephine. Portrait taken in Perry County, OH, circa 1900.

The babies began coming, uh, fast and furiously. The first child was born in August, 1893 and there would be a total of 10 births, 9 children that grew to adulthood, before they were finished procreating. Sometime between the birth of the third child in October, 1896 and the birth of the fourth in November 1898 the family moved to Perry County, Ohio. [5] They stayed in that area only a few more years, but long enough to have another child in December, 1899. [Ibid.] They were living in Bearfield Township, Perry County at the time the 1900 census which was taken on June 19th. Josephine’s mother and step-father were enumerated on the same page, but Pearley’s father and mother had left Ohio and settled in Arapahoe District, Furnas, Nebraska by that time. Pearley and Josephine would soon follow the Williams family on a journey throughout the midwestern and western United States.

Between the years 1902 and 1910 there were four more children born that could be documented. I cannot find another one but Josephine stated in the 1910 census that she had given birth to 9 children and that 8 of them were living. This census was taken just 8 days before Josephine gave birth to their last child, the tenth birth and ninth living child. [6] In September, 1902 they had a child born in Nebraska; in September, 1904 they lived in Missouri; in March, 1906 they lived in Iowa; and in May, 1910 they lived in Laramie, Wyoming. It seems likely that the child that died was born between 1906 and 1910 but exactly where and when would be hard to determine.

Josephine with 3 of her youngest children, perhaps circa 1915

The family seems to have continued the nomadic life for a few more years as they attempted to make a living and a life. They were in Iowa at the time of the 1915 census but were in Omaha, Nebraska on South 32nd Street by the time of the draft registration in 1918. Pearley and the older boys registered. [7] This much we could establish before losing the trail.

Then the marriage between Pearley and Josephine fell apart and the couple separated. Some of the children remained in Nebraska, some moved to California, and one came east with Pearley and his parents. My grandpa was separated from his mother and apparently never saw Josephine again. The information that was passed down was sketchy and heartbreaking.

Thankfully, about 30 years after the family had fragmented some of the children reconnected with each other and criss-crossed the country getting reacquainted. Just a few years ago one of my aunts contacted one cousin for more information since we could not find any death records online for Josephine Williams in California that fit our relative. One of the Nebraska cousins knew that she had remarried to a man by the last name of Wheeler and even knew the cemetery where she was buried.

Remarriage meant a divorce decree so I contacted the Douglas County probate to see if there was any record of it there. There was, but it breaks my heart to read it.

Due to extreme cruelty and non-support as the direct result of intemperance, Josephine filed for divorce on February 19, 1920 and was granted an absolute decree on April 23, 1920. She asked for custody of the five youngest children – and then changed her mind about this, evidently – thus a marriage tragically ended after 27 years and a son lost all ties to his mother.

After I received the divorce decree I contacted Nebraska for a copy of the marriage report between Josephine Williams and Truman W. Wheeler. I received a copy of this document also. Their marriage took place on 15 February, 1921 in Omaha and the officiant was C. W. Savidge. It was Mr. Wheeler’s second marriage also.

Thanks to the fine newsletters received regularly from NEHGS I was made aware of several of the Omaha records that have indices online. The following link lists the marriage between Josephine and Mr. Wheeler: http://omahamarriages.wordpress.com/wi-wo/. Although I already have this information there are links to many databases in the area that I intend to explore further.

The last document that puts the final touch on Josephine’s life is her death certificate obtained from Los Angeles, California. I also received a transcription of her husband’s death certificate courtesy of a kind genealogical volunteer. Josephine’s husband, Truman, died on July 3, 1923 of what I think was kidney failure. He was working in real estate and they had lived in California for 2 years. Josephine died just a few months later on Septermber 27th of carcinoma. They were buried next to each other in Inglewood Park Cemetery.

[3] I saw the original record in Meigs County, OH marriage records Volume 9, page 97 many years ago, but the original books were closed to copying. The reference is also found in the book MEIGS COUNTY OHIO MARRIAGES 1819-1913, compiled by Wes Cochran in July 1991, page 390. I viewed a copy of this book in the Ohio University Library.